Suspect pleads guilty in botched Bridgeport apartment robbery

A Waterbury man has pleaded guilty to taking part in the botched robbery of a Bridgeport apartment last year, in which the crew hoped to steal drugs and drug money, authorities said.

Instead, the suspects weren't even able to get inside, despite coming prepared with a crowbar. They were apprehended by police after they headed back to their car.

Kareem Porter, 25, also known as “Reem,” pleaded guilty Wednesday to conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act Robbery, the U.S. attorney's office said. He appeared before U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer in New Haven.

Porter faces up to 20 years in prison on the charge, the U.S. attorney's office said. Sentencing is scheduled for July 2.

Prosecutors said the group including Porter and two others, Andy Marte and Tyrone Allen, drove to the Bridgeport apartment on April 28, 2023. The crew “intended to carry out a robbery at an apartment in which they believed they would find drugs and drug proceeds,” the U.S. attorney's office said in a news release.

Porter and Allen, equipped with a crowbar, attempted to bust into the apartment at Marte's instruction, the office said, while Marte stayed back as the getaway driver.

A fourth would-be robber, Jermaine Bethel, also showed up to take part in the break-in and robbery after Marte contacted him, the U.S. attorney's office said.

After the suspects were unable to break into the apartment, they returned to their vehicle “where they were encountered by law enforcement,” the office said.

Police searched the car and seized two handguns brought along by Marte, as well as the crowbar, prosecutors said.

Marte, Allen and Bethel all await sentencing after also having pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act Robbery, the U.S. attorney's office said.